Yesterday, Lori Loughlin plead not guilty in the college admissions scandal, where she’s among 33 parents, including Felicity Huffman, who face charges of mail fraud and money laundering conspiracy, which carry a potential maximum sentence of five years in prison.

ICYMI, the former Fuller House actress and her husband are accused of paying $500,000 in bribes to falsely designate their daughters as recruits to the USC crew team. According to reports, Loughlin and husband J. Mossimo Giannulli were offered a plea agreement, but decided to reject the deal because they reportedly didn’t want to spend time in jail. Huffman, for her part, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud.

When I first heard the news, I didn’t want to believe it. Like most of us, I grew up on Full House, and saw Loughlin as my own Aunt Becky who lived in my upstairs attic (or so I wished). And while it’s hard to give celebs any kind of pass, I wanted to believe that as a human and a mom, this was a momentary lapse on her part, and that she thought she was doing what she had to do to protect her child’s future. I wanted to believe that, I really did– but with this not guilty plea–I’ve lost patience.

As a mom of an 18 month old, who would have to fall face first into a huge pot of gold before I would (maybe) ever be able afford to bribe a college with an extra $500K, I worry every day about how and if I’ll be able to afford college for my daughter one day, and worse, how she may unfairly lose an acceptance for someone whose parents are bending the rules.

Yelena Shuster, who runs TheAdmissionsGuru.com, says other parents share my fear. “Without bribes or millions of dollars to donate a wing, parents may feel that the cards are stacked against their kids even higher than before,” she shares.

Across the country, the college admissions process can be even more daunting for people of color facing structural inequality, people living in poverty, students whose parents are undocumented and single working parents without the resources to take extra time off. For instance, trying to travel and visit a college can break the budget for some families who are struggling to pay the electricity bill or put food on the table, and it upsets me to think about the people who are already extremely challenged in this process.

However, Shuster says that most admissions officers recognize these unique challenges and factor your circumstances into their acceptance decisions.

“My best advice to those students is not to let the cheating scandal demoralize you: colleges across the country are desperate for your unique perspective and value your everyday perseverance,” she shares. “Write about what it’s like to grow up undocumented in your personal essay and how you overcame those daily challenges. Explain any poor academic performance in the Additional Information section if your life responsibilities interfered with schoolwork. Include any after-school jobs or household commitments (like babysitting your siblings) in your Activities List. You may think they’re not as prestigious as an unpaid internship or research position, but admissions officers value your home and financial responsibilities just as much: they show maturity, independence, family values, and other characteristics they want on their campus.”

But still, it’s stressful. With rising tuition costs (The College Board reports that the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2017–2018 school year was $34,740 at private colleges, $9,970 for state residents at public colleges, and $25,620 for out-of-state residents attending public universities), I worry about the college price tag looming over my head and the unfair advantages that many people have.

Fortunately, Shuster says there are ways that myself and other proactive parents don’t have to feel like we’re victims to the college application process and those who are trying to take advantage of it.

“I would recommend focusing on what aspects of the stressful admissions system their kids can control: taking practice tests of the SATs or ACTs, visiting college campuses, and writing drafts of the personal essays months ahead to allow enough time for revision,” she shares. “Most of the system is pretty clear on what admissions officers are looking for: good grades, intellectual curiosity, rigorous academics, and a personal statement that shows your personality and values.”

For parents who are still concerned, remember to take advantage of any free college prep workshops at your local school or library. Shuster notes that resources like the online Khan Academy offers comprehensive free test prep resources.

“In addition, low-income families may qualify for waivers for the cost of required tests (SATs, ACTs, APs) and college application costs,” she says. There are also non-profit organizations like Questbridge that connects the nation’s low-income youth with leading colleges and opportunities, as well as Bright Futures in Florida, 826 Valencia in San Francisco, and College Access For All in New York.

“Parents can still trust this system because the spots the cheating students got were always out of reach for most applicants–those stolen spots were reserved for athletes or major donors that most applicants do not compete with,” Shuster explains.

AMG/Parade Digital

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